Holiday Cooking with Ease:

Recipe 2

Pan Fried Lemon and Garlic Chicken 

Welcome to my second holiday recipe, as shared with HouseTrip as part of their easy holiday recipes series. Today’s recipe comes from France, and is so simple and yet packed with fabulous flavours……it’s pan-fried chicken breasts in a creamy, lemon and garlic sauce (a one pan dish), with just a baked potato and some seasonal vegetables to cook to accompany the dish. I made mine with a budget supermarket Boursin alternative, it’s much cheaper than Boursin cream cheese with herbs and garlic, and it tastes almost the same. You can buy this cream cheese from Lidl in France, and I always have a few pots tucked away on the fridge for baking and cooking.

My last recipe was also from France, Provence Beef Casserole, and I will be sharing three more recipes over the next two weeks, with dishes from Italy and Spain being featured. When you are on a self-catering holiday, it’s very important to make sure that all the family gets to enjoy the holiday, and the cook isn’t chained to the stove or the kitchen sink; so, with that in mind, the recipes I created with HouseTrip, are all easy to cook with easy to source local ingredients, and in most cases they are cooked in one pan (or pot) for less washing up. All of my recipes can be found on their website, as well as on Lavender and Lovage, and I hope they will provide interesting recipe inspiration for all holiday cooks.

The recipes I have created are:

Family Holiday Recipes

France
* Provence Beef Casserole – An easy one pot dish made with beef and local French herbs that can be made in the oven or on top of the stove; Serve with rice or potatoes

* Pan Fried Lemon and Garlic Chicken – An easy pan-fried chicken dish made with chicken breasts, cream cheese, lemon, garlic and olive oil. Serve with baked potato and seasonal vegetables
Spain
* One Pot Spanish Chicken and Rice – Cook a complete meal in a pan with chicken thighs or breasts, tinned red peppers, chorizo, onions, tomatoes and rice

* Red Pepper and Cheese Tortilla – Make this tasty pepper and cheese omelette in a small frying pan and finish it off in the oven or under the grill for ease – Serve with salad
Italy
* Oven baked bacon and mushroom risotto – Easy to make risotto with pancetta and mushrooms that is baked in the oven – serve with salad and bread

I hope you enjoy today’s recipe, whether you are on holiday or you are cooking it for a simple mid-week family meal; following on from my last holiday recipe post, I am also sharing some more Supermarket Top Tips below, to aid your holiday experience when you are staying on the Continent. Karen

  Disclaimer: Commissioned work with HouseTrip

Pan Fried Lemon and Garlic Chicken

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Serves	4
Prep time	10 minutes
Cook time	30 minutes
Total time	40 minutes
Allergy	Milk
Dietary	Gluten Free
Meal type	Lunch, Main Dish
Misc	Child Friendly, Serve Hot
Occasion	Casual Party, Formal Party
Region	French
By author	Karen S Burns-Booth

An easy pan-fried chicken dish made with chicken breasts, cream cheese, lemon, garlic and olive oil. Serve with baked potato and seasonal vegetables.

Ingredients

• 4 boneless and skinless chicken breast fillets
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
• Zest and juice of 1 lemon, plus zest of 1 lemon to garnish
• 1 x 150g tub of herb and garlic cream cheese, such as Boursin or equivalent
• Salt and pepper to taste

Note

An easy pan-fried chicken dish made with chicken breasts, cream cheese, lemon, garlic and olive oil. Serve with baked potato and seasonal vegetables.

Directions

Step 1	Heat the olive oil in a large frying or sauté pan and brown the chicken breasts over a high heat on both sides. Remove the chicken and set aside.
Step 2	Add the garlic, lemon zest and juice and cream cheese to the pan and cook until well amalgamated.
Step 3	Put the chicken breasts back into the pan and simmer over a gentle heat, turning regularly, for between 15 to 20 minutes or until the chicken is cooked.
Step 4	Serve the chicken and the sauce immediately with seasonal vegetables and a baked potato, or salad.

Supermarket Top Tips:

Supermarkets are very similar on the Continent, with a few exceptions. The fresh vegetables and fruit are not normally by the entrance, as they are in the UK, and are situated towards the back and the middle of the store. Most towns and villages have a local supermarket, as do all large cities of course and they offer hardware, kitchen utensils and toiletries as well as food and drink. Here are a few handy “cheats” and tips for supermarket shopping in Europe, especially in France and Spain.

1. Use cheaper substitutions for famous brand names; all supermarkets offer their own generic alternatives for items such as: Boursin cream cheese, ready meals, frozen vegetables, regional cheese, pastry etc. You can save lots of money this way and the taste will not be compromised at all. The alternatives are always conveniently located near to the original branded items.

2. All large supermarkets have a self-pay section, similar to the UK; you need to have cash or a card that is accepted in Europe to self-checkout. The procedure is exactly the same as the UK and there are always staff on hand to help if you get stuck. Please note, there are NO plastic bags offered in most European supermarkets, and you must take your own bags. Large reusable bags are offered on sale for about €1 and when they are at the end of their life, you can normally replace them for free.

3. Do NOT expect to buy Rennies, Paracetamol, Brufin, or any other non-prescription drugs in European supermarkets, you cannot buy them in the supermarkets; you will have to buy them at a Pharmacie and they are very expensive, so make sure you take plenty with you.

4. . Don’t worry if you have left any clothing behind in the UK, as even the smallest supermarkets offer a clothing and footwear section. Sunglasses and reading glasses can also be purchased in supermarkets.

5. The budget store Lidl is very popular, especially in France, and you will find the same range of products on sale as you would in the UK; there are very few Aldi’s in France, and the nearest equivalent is Leader Price. Other names to look out for are: Carrefour, Leclerc, Super U, Intermarche, Casino and Auchan.

(I will be sharing more tips in my other recipe posts)